Principal Financial Group Inc. Raises Stock Position in Hubbell Incorporated (NYSE:HUBB)

Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Hubbell Incorporated (NYSE:HUBB - Free Report) by 7.1% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 229,210 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 15,215 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.43% of Hubbell worth $98,187,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Groupama Asset Managment raised its holdings in Hubbell by 17.0% in the 3rd quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 6,955 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 1,010 shares in the last quarter. Prospera Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in Hubbell in the third quarter worth about $33,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in Hubbell in the third quarter worth about $41,000. Quarry LP bought a new stake in Hubbell during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $49,000. Finally, Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hubbell during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $58,000. Institutional investors own 88.16% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently commented on HUBB shares. Mizuho boosted their target price on shares of Hubbell from $450.00 to $490.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Hubbell from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Hubbell from $407.00 to $445.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered shares of Hubbell from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and lowered their target price for the company from $493.00 to $473.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Hubbell from $445.00 to $455.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $472.13.

Hubbell Stock Performance

HUBB stock traded up $2.25 during trading on Friday, reaching $426.80. The stock had a trading volume of 821,202 shares, compared to its average volume of 440,109. The firm has a market cap of $22.91 billion, a PE ratio of 30.75, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a current ratio of 1.66, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The stock's 50 day moving average is $450.71 and its two-hundred day moving average is $409.68. Hubbell Incorporated has a 52 week low of $315.38 and a 52 week high of $481.35.

Hubbell (NYSE:HUBB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The industrial products company reported $4.49 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.47 by $0.02. Hubbell had a net margin of 13.33% and a return on equity of 28.81%. The business had revenue of $1.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.48 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.95 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Hubbell Incorporated will post 16.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Hubbell Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 29th were paid a $1.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 29th. This is a boost from Hubbell's previous quarterly dividend of $1.22. This represents a $5.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.24%. Hubbell's dividend payout ratio is 38.04%.

Insider Activity at Hubbell

In other news, insider Mark Eugene Mikes sold 1,144 shares of Hubbell stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $466.20, for a total transaction of $533,332.80. Following the sale, the insider now owns 2,957 shares in the company, valued at $1,378,553.40. This trade represents a 27.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.66% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Hubbell

Hubbell Incorporated, together with its subsidiaries, designs, manufactures, and sells electrical and utility solutions in the United States and internationally. It operates through two segments, Electrical Solutions and Utility Solutions. The Electrical Solution segment offers standard and special application wiring device products, rough-in electrical products, connector and grounding products, lighting fixtures, and other electrical equipment for use in industrial, commercial, and institutional facilities by electrical contractors, maintenance personnel, electricians, utilities, and telecommunications companies, as well as components and assemblies.